Proud of My Baby Sister!

My sister has a blog called The Girl Creative, and I am so proud of her. She got me into blogging, and she has some following these days...she is up to 957! Not that numbers mean anything, but like I said, I am so proud of her! She is my best friend (from afar, now), but the best all the same.

She hosts New Friend Fridays, so I am here to give her some support. Here is the link to her party...today it is all about embarrassing moments! Her story is hilarious...I still remember it!

So, here's to Diana - and cheers to Diana!

The Newest Member of the Family

James and I had our first bit of bad news as a couple. Amos, our kitten, got hit by a car on Friday and passed on. :( This is James and Amos in January.
James got Amos when we had been dating almost a year- he was a rescued feral cat and the cutest little thing.

So, Amos has been our baby. Amos loved to go outside and the place where James used to live was perfect...lots of land, long driveway, woodsy property, hardly any cars ever came down his street.

Well, the house we moved to is on a much busier street, but Amos just would not stay inside. So, we let him out tentatively - he wandered and came back. But a few times, we found Amos across the street. And James knew that somehow, this would not end well.

And, well, on Friday, when I got home from work, our neighbor came right over and asked if we had a grey cat. He didn't have to say anything else. I knew.

James was working late, so after I gained my composure, I had to break the bad news - and he came home right away. I knew James would be so sad...he loved Amos so much. "Amos McGreatest" is what James called him.

He was hit by a livery driver driving a limo. The man was deaf and mute and went banging on our neighbor's door after Amos was hit. He was so upset. They quickly moved Amos to the side of the road - thankfully he wasn't squished, but he was gone already.

So, we sadly said a prayer and buried him. But it was a tough, sad night. :(

I asked James if we should get another one - he wasn't sure. We have another cat - Hannah - and while Hannah would terrorize Amos at times, they were just beginning to become friends. Hannah kept looking around for him and was mopey for a few days. We thought it would be good to get Hannah a new friend as soon as possible. This is James and Hannah.
So, on Sunday, we went to the shelter where James had gotten me a gift certificate for Christmas for a kitten a year and a half ago (Never used it...were waiting for spring for kitten season, I traveled on a few trips, then we got engaged... you know how that all goes...)

A few minutes after we walked in, a lady came in with a kitten that she had to drop off. Her daughter had taken him because someone had come to her job and was giving them away. They had the kitten for about a month, but she just couldn't afford to keep him. We told her we were looking for a kitten and she got so excited. She said she would feel so happy if she knew the kitten would have a good home. We kind of felt it was meant to be, so we said yes.

Well, meet Samson.

James picked the name because Samson in the Bible is a story of redemption. And Samson is a way that we can redeem our loss of Amos - a second chance. And I had just heard on TV the other day that the name Samson means "Sunshine." Perfect.

We picked him up today and he is great...SOOOOO playful and confident...not a scared bone in his little body. And he is already jumping around and exploring like he owns the place. I am sure we are going to love him a bunch. So, here is the newest member of our family:

The Days Leading Up

Hi everyone! I keep saying, 'Today, I will put up a post for my blog"' - but I can tell you, time management has been the biggest issue I'm having since being married! I just feel like I have no time to do what I have been used to doing! I'm still trying to catch up after putting off everything due to the wedding planning/wedding/honeymoon.

Anyhow, I will try to be a little more consistent, even if it is just a small post.

So,it is good to be back! I'm feeling more 'human' again, which is actually refreshing.

The post date on this might say, April 20, which was the day I wrote it, hoping to get back and edit it. But today is actually April 28. So that tells you a little of where I am at, lol.

I was so busy during the wedding itself, I sort of lost touch with tracking my 'journey.' I'll do my best to back-track, and hopefully, include only the good stuff. It won't just be 'wedding' stuff - I'll try to stay current. This blog will need an update anyway, as we have completed our 'journey to the altar.' The new one begins. So, here we go...

The wedding was on Friday, March 26 - a month ago yesterday, actually. The week before was crazy. We had the rehearsal on the Saturday before, March 20. Then we had the Bridesmaids Brunch (which was originally supposed to be the rehearsal brunch), then the Bachelorette. You can read about that here.

The next day my sister (also a bridesmaid) had her new baby daughter christened, because my grandparents from Florida could be in town for both events. Unfortunately, I didn't make the church, only the dinner after. I was still trying to get the candelabras for my centerpieces from my friend Kari. Instead of making me go on a trip to NYC to pick them up, she was gracious enough to take an hour train ride each way out to me. She was great, and it was so worth it. I spent the in-between time lingerie shopping (funny how that gets lost in all the wedding planning fuss!).

I had work the next 2 days - both jobs - so, at that point, I was squeezing everything in. Mom and Nana were on detail for finishing the favors, I still had to put together the centerpieces and pack. James' dad was great to arrange a guy dinner for James, his dad and my dad.

So, by Wednesday, I was going crazy. I still had to pack up the rest of my apartment, which was stressing me out. My parents decided to put the house on the market on May 1, so I felt the pressure to get it as vacant as possible.

Thursday and Friday were blurs...Last minute shopping, apartment-packing, honeymoon-packing, picking up the dress, tanning...

I remember that James and I didn't talk too much during that time 24-48 time period. I think we were letting the anticipation build up to the big moment. We did see each other for a brief moment on Thursday at Home Depot to pick out a counter-top that a friend was installing for us while we were on our honeymoon (he did some renovations on our kitchen as a wedding gift! So generous!) - and to pick up his paycheck so I could pay the caterers. I remember that it was a little damp, chilly...but I remember kissing him goodbye in the parking lot saying, "I'll see ya at the altar!"

And on Thursday night, my dad and I headed to the reception hall to set up the centerpieces (which, I think, came out great! I loved them!). And I am so thankful for my dad...it would have taken me HOURS if it wasn't for him! I could have left them for the staff to do, but me being the perfectionist that I am... well, enough said.

I don't even remember what time I went to bed that night...I don't think it was too bad, but I do remember thinking, "This is the last time I will fall asleep in this house, in this bed, all by myself. It is really happening..."

More to come....

Impressions of a Wedding Day

A newlywed of just 21 days old…it is so hard to believe that the event that consumed me for months is behind me. And I have to say – it feels great!

In fairness, let me voice that my wedding day was amazing. A few minor glitches, but the incredible joy is what stands out to me. When I walked into the church and started down the aisle, James and I were all smiles. Big ones. And the way the church was set up, our guest felt very close, just like they were surrounding us. So, I didn’t feel nervous at all. I felt like my face hurt from smiling so hard. And it was genuine. For that moment, I really felt like James and I were close to exploding. We smiled when we saw each other, when we lit our candles, when we exchanged rings, when we said our vows.

I always thought my wedding ceremony would be a weepy, emotional moment – but it wasn’t. It was just happy.

And the service was beautiful. Our pastor did such a phenomenal job…it was heartfelt, sincere, warm and personal. And that was the whole atmosphere in the church…warm, soft, peaceful – and happy.

When our pastor pronounced us Mr. and Mrs. James L, I could see some faces in the audience, and I could tell everyone was so excited but wasn’t sure what to do. Then all the sudden, everyone just stood up and started cheering and clapping. It was such an amazing moment. The love and excitement in the room was tangible.

I don’t know if people were so happy because we were a little older and waited so long? Because each of us had had some tough years prior to getting to this point? Because they really could tell that God brought us together in a special way? And had a special purpose for us? [I had a number of people tell me, ‘Katie, you guys did it the right way.’ I’m not sure of their interpretation of that…but I found that interesting, because while we tried to be intentional, it felt a little fumbly when we were going through it.]

And for all of James’ nerves prior, he did outstanding. He is such a freakin’ natural! At the reception, he was going around to all of my friends, chit-chatting, introducing himself…he did amazing! I was so proud to be his wife.

The reception was great too. We did more of a cocktail reception – not really a dance party. But our guests told me they all had such a good time catching up with people they hadn’t seen in a while, not struggling to talk over music. I had a lot of people tell me it was such a different wedding and reception than any other they had been to – and it was the best.

I’m not sure what made it so for them, but I am glad. I had a lot of different circles of friends from my past, so it was like a reunion for a lot of people. I just saw lots of laughing, smiles…and every table I went to, I wished that I had been assigned to sit at that table and hang out with them.

Needless to say, we were wiped by the end. But we went to the hotel, got there around 1 a.m. We drank champagne, got ‘acquainted’ with each other for the first time (yes, let’s just say that if I was an Old Testament Jewish girl,I would not have been stoned!), and stayed up to watch the sunrise. We opened our cards and we were overwhelmed by the notes and the gifts. We were in tears after each one we opened. The generosity of our family and friends stunned us. And they are working people just like us. We felt so humbled and unworthy.

So, all that to say –all the planning was worth it – but I am glad all the planning is OVER! It feels AWESOME to not have to call vendors, make appointments, print programs, assemble centerpieces…it is nice to just ‘live’ again. And this time, with my man.

Yahoo!!! 

Nitty gritty details and pictures to come!

Home

Yes, we are home! We had an amazing honeymoon but it feels great to be home!

I am slowly re-entering the real world - post-wedding and post-honeymoon. Feels like culture shock, lol! But I am excited to start normaling out and connecting again.

'Real' blog posts soon to come! :)

A Small View of the Day

Hi from the Smoky Mountains! It is beautiful here and we are having a GREAT time! Just thought I would throw up a few amateur shots of the wedding day...more details of the day and honeymoon in the weeks to come. Lookin' forward to catching up once we get back next week!